Department for Transport

Channel Ferries: Freight

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the capacity of the companies contracted to provide ferries in the event of a no deal Brexit to deliver necessary freight services; and what assurances they have sought from those companies.

baroness sugg: The Department had reviewed the plans of each company with the support of external advisers. On that basis, supported by contractual assurances, we are satisfied that the three companies concerned have the capacity to deliver these services. They will not be paid if services cannot be delivered. More information is available in my Written Statement of 7 January (HLWS 1200) which can be viewed at the link below. https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Lords/2019-01-07/HLWS1200/

Railways: Ownership

lord stoddart of swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what parts of the UK's railways, including tracks and trains, they own.

baroness sugg: The national rail infrastructure is held and managed by Network Rail, a Non-Departmental Public Body reporting to the Department for Transport. A number of privately owned lines and sidings are connected to the national rail network. Almost all rolling stock in operation on the national rail network is privately owned. The franchised passenger train operating companies are contracted out by the Department for Transport or devolved administrations. The Intercity East Coast franchise is currently operated by a publicly owned operating company, LNER Ltd, pending the letting of a new franchise. All these train services operate on the national rail network alongside privately owned freight and passenger train operating companies. The High Speed 1 infrastructure between London St Pancras and the UK Channel Tunnel portal is owned by the Department for Transport and let as a thirty year concession. Some UK cities own and operate their own rail networks, notably London, Newcastle and Glasgow.

Department for Education

Post-18 Education and Funding Review

lord goodlad: To ask Her Majesty's Government when their review of post-18 education and fundingwill be published.

viscount younger of leckie: The Review of Post-18 Education and Funding is being informed by independent advice from an expert panel, chaired by Philip Augar. The panel have undertaken an extensive programme of stakeholder engagement and evidence gathering. They will report in 2019 before government concludes the overall review.The government will want to move swiftly to improve the post-18 system once the review has concluded. Implementation timetables will depend on the review’s findings and recommendations and the legislative and operational requirements.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

China: Christianity

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representationsthey have made to the government of the People’s Republic of China following (1) the destruction of crosses and shrines, (2) the closure of Christian churches, and (3) the arrest of pastors, including the detention of Pastor Wang Yi and his wife Jiang Rong of Early Rain Covenant Church, just before Christmas 2018.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are concerned by the arrest and detention of Pastor Wang Yi and his wife Jiang Rong. We believe the restrictions placed on Christianity and other religions in China, that include individuals being harassed or detained for their beliefs are unacceptable. The freedom to practise, change or share ones faith or belief without discrimination or violent opposition is a human right that all people should enjoy. We believe that societies which aim to guarantee freedom of religion or belief are more stable, prosperous and resilient against violent extremism.We are robust in raising the full range of our human rights concerns with the Chinese authorities. We raised our concerns over restriction of freedom of religion or belief as part of China’s Universal Periodic Review in November 2018, and in our 27 June 2018 statement at the UN Human Rights Council.

Ministry of Defence

Autonomous Weapons

lord judd: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of governments that are, or are almost, able to mobilise new weapons systems capable of operating without meaningful human control; how soon they expect the UK will be able to deploy such systems; and what steps they are taking to secure international controls of such systems.

earl howe: UK policy is that the operation of weapon systems will always be under human control as an absolute guarantee of oversight and authority for weapons release - no UK weapons systems currently in development will be capable of attacking targets without human control and input. Officials from Her Majesty's Government are closely involved in international discussions on autonomy at the United Nations to ensure that developments occur responsibly and in line with international law.